What's up with expensive dust covers?

So for my Marantz TT15S1, dust covers are like $200-$400?? What's up with this? I went to Tarjet and got a Sterilite bin I'm going to turn upside down over it. Regas, which are crazy priced in the US only cost $90. What is up with the Marantz dust covers?

 

Looks like they're being custom made by third-party vendors - who are likely turning them out one by one, not like the mass-produced ones we know from the old days. Doesn't seem as if one is available from Marantz (who probably isn't making that TT anyway).

 

Here is a 1/4" thick oversized winner. Don't see many that are made with 1/4" material.

 

It’s like it’s in magneto’s cell lol
Seriously though, that looks very nice.

 

I wonder what it costs for the manufacturer. I mean 90$ is like a third of the price of an RP1.

 

Price and cost are not the same thing. Replacement parts for anything will have a higher price than the finished product. If you tried to build a car with replacement parts in your garage, you wouldn't make it as cheap as they do in a factory. You have to consider overhead costs are always added to the price. Overhead in a factory is considerably lower than it is for a fancy store in a high rent shopping area. And $90 is less than a quarter of the price of an RP1 actually closer to 1/5th the price. 5x $90 = $450. Last I checked the RP1 retailed for $475, if you fine one for sale today, they'll still be priced as close-outs. So they can be found for $400. But the dustcover isn't going to be discounted as a close-out. Beside it's a fair price considering Technics sell for $140.
Technics: Dust Cover for Technics 1200 (RGD0078BZ-Q)

The other thing is that Rega pretty much uses the same dust cover for all their turntables other than the higher end ones which have moved away from a rectangular plinth. So they can have them built in larger quantities. There are 5 models that use the same dustcover and then they also make the replacement covers.

 

I had one custom built to my specs at TAP Plastics, which you may be familiar with being in the Bay Area. It cost about $150 to have built.

 

In the EU RP1s are like 300$.

 

There is a place in Michigan called JNB Audio that will build any TT cover for $120. I ordered a dust cover for my Luxman with a double thick section at hinges. It was perfect construction.

 

I think I paid $240 shipped for mine. It is large.

 

Yeah, the prices I've seen are nuts for an acrylic box. Even 1/4" thick is a fraction of the price at the link below. No need to pay someone to mark it up. You could even build one cheaper (look up DIY acrylic fish tanks) but it's tough to finish/polish properly.

5 Sided Clear Acrylic Box - Custom Size

 

Another related question: what’s up with expensive wood cases for vintage amps, receivers and the like?

 

Hi Guys!

That's crazy.

I have made a very thin cloth out of cotton and silk which I put over my TT when I do not listen to it.

It was about 5€. Maybe not to everyones taste, but I like it.

Bye Andrea

 

The Rega cover comes with the table, so if you bought and additional one for $90, you'd have two of them. It also fits all of their decks made over a 30+ year period. That's not really a fair comparison. I guess you are just trying to point out how expensive it is to buy a full dustcover for brands and models of tables that do not provide them with the tables.

The most affordable, and IMO, the most practical option for someone who has such a table is to buy a cover that protects the platter and arm, such as those made by Michell and now by Rega for their Planar 8 and Planar 10. These should fit most tables with 9" tonearms. You would have to measure the arm mounting distance and inquire to be sure it would fit other models. They also sell for about $90 - $100 I think, and are much less expensive to ship. Even having something like that made would be way more affordable that a full box, which you'd also have to deal with every time you wanted to play a record. The free solution is to use an old Lp record to rest on the platter and cover it only. You could also fashion one cheaply from an old record and cardboard with a decoupage coating if you are really crafty and cash strapped.
-Bill

 

Almost all that I've seen are made-to-order by small woodworking businesses. Just like the acrylic dust covers, if they aren't made in batches by original mftr., they are going to be costly. On the upside most of the new ones I've seen are nicer and better-built than the original (and typically optional) cases.

 

I think I will pick up this cover for my VPI. Won't keep all the dust off but I can just throw a sheet over it and that would work. The cover would protect the tonearm and stylus from the sheet getting caught.

Basic Series Dust Cover

Or maybe the Rega option as @KT88 suggested. Those look really nice, just hard to know if it would fit properly.

 

I’m not interested in a cover for VPI Avenger. It would have to be pretty big and cumbersome increasing the chance of damaging the TT.I keep it clean.

 

When you have kids, broken cantilevers from wayward footballs/basketballs/baseballs/batmans are much north of those prices

one that fits over the whole plinth is best and takes lots of the worry out

 

It’s one of the main reasons I don’t love turntable designs that aren’t a rectangular plinth with hinges. They never seem to include a dustcover, and the options available add significantly to the overall cost of the turntable.

However, I think one of the cheaper options others have shown that at least cover the platter may work out OK, along with regular dusting fo the rest of the deck (mind the stylus, of course!). I’d probably just bite the bullet and get something proper, but I could see someone getting by without.

 

My kids are very good about my hifi stuff but their cat is another story. Need dust cover.

 

Yeah, it’s a dog with a very waggy tail in my house. The dust protection is almost a secondary benefit.

 

Mine too...I put the fear of God in them from basically birth. Balanced it with some sitting and listening too of course

Still I'd be so concerned without a dust cover.

That said, my only mishap came while a record was spinning a number years back and my 2 YO daughter brought out her inner DJ Shadow. We were taking down the Christmas tree and lost track of her...the spinning platter was too much for her to resist. I'll never forget the sound....

 

Or CATS!

 

Said turntable is actually built by Clearaudio in Germany.

 

Right. Dust I can handle.